


Lend a Hand or Wing

by sunspot (unavoidedcrisis)



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-12
Updated: 2018-02-12
Packaged: 2019-03-17 03:17:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 823
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13650321
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/unavoidedcrisis/pseuds/sunspot
Summary: Hedwig wants something, urgently.





	Lend a Hand or Wing

**Author's Note:**

  * For [makiyakinabe](https://archiveofourown.org/users/makiyakinabe/gifts).



Harry and Ron take their books out to the lake and spread out under a tree to read. Hermione promises to join them as soon as she's done in the library, which means they'll see her the next morning at breakfast.

The breeze is unseasonably warm for autumn and it's only half a chapter or so later that Ron is softly snoring, hand over his face and head resting on his balled-up jumper.

The section on the history and usage of the Draconifors spell actually holds Harry's attention for long enough that he doesn't notice Hedwig has flown down from the owlery until she nips at his wrist.

"Oh, hello you," he murmurs, patting her head before he turns the page. She nips at him again, twice, much more insistently, until he closes the Transfiguration book.

"All right, all right." Harry rubs his skin where she'd left little red marks and crosses his arms, waiting for whatever she wants to become apparent.

Hedwig chirps at him with her buzzing little trill and hops a few feet off before turning around and trilling again.

"Am I supposed to follow you?"

Harry pushes himself to his feet and the moment he's standing, Hedwig soars into the air, spiralling high above his head. "Suppose I just looked too comfortable down there." he muses aloud. She glides back down and perches on his arm when he holds it out, wincing only a little at her claws through his robes. She's a very gentle owl, but her feet are still talons.

Hedwig barks at him, loud and long, before taking off again, digging her talons in a little more than necessary. Ron grunts and rolls his face down into his makeshift pillow, but doesn't wake up.

Harry trails off after Hedwig, as she clearly has something she wants him to do.

She alternates between soaring above him and drifting back down to circling around him, brushing tips of her speckled wings across his cheeks. Harry laughs while she wheels in the air, turning and looping, letting out her cry again.

It doesn't take long before she leads him to the edge of the Forbidden Forest. Hedwig barks as she perches on his arm again, settling in a flutter of wings ruffling his hair. "Hedwig, we can't go in there… Nice enough day for a walk, though," he says, turning to go back to the lake. Hedwig's talons dig into his shoulder.

"Ow! Hedwig, what's the matter?"

She chirps and tilts her head. Harry sees the gathering of ravens, probably ten of them, in the trees above their heads.

"So?" he asks.

Hedwig fixes him with a stare, intense amber eyes somehow judging him for being slow to locate the point.

"You want me to chase them off? Did they try to hurt you?" She doesn't seem hurt, just perturbed.

Most of the ravens glide down from their perches to land in a half-circle in the treeline. Hedwig pushes off from Harry's shoulder none too gently and flies at them, causing them to backup a few steps each. There's an indignant screech from one of them, a mass ruffling of feathers, and some kicking of their feet in place.

Harry approaches, slowly, one hand in his robe pocket on his wand, just in case. The ravens scatter and retreat back to the treetops, eyes glittering when they catch in the afternoon sun. Hedwig hops once, twice, then ruffles up her feathers and bobs her head a few times.

"Don't be like that, we can't all have your eyes," he says, squinting at the grass that frankly, all just looks like grass. It takes a few minutes on his knees, damp soaking through his robes and his jeans underneath before he sees what she sees.

He finally moves the bent grass and stray twigs away and rescues Trevor the toad from becoming lunch. The ravens scream, but Hedwig barks back and none of them come any closer.

"Come on Trev, come on Hedwig. Enough excitement for one day."

* * *

Ron is more than a bit confused when Harry shakes him awake and passes the toad to him. He rubs his face on the sleeve of his robe and looks around. "Hedwig, did you try eating Trevor? I think toads are bad for you, aren't they? Toxic, or something."

She pecks him hard in the hand and takes off back to the owlery as Ron startles and drops his schoolbook, shouting after her.

"She's a very good owl," Harry tells him once they're walking back to the castle.

"A right menace, more like."

Harry relays the story and Ron begrudgingly agrees, all right, she's the hero of the day. "I don't know how Neville keeps losing him though, I mean, he barely moves, look!" Ron holds his palm up, Trevor still lounging in it. "C'mon, has he even blinked?"

"Dunno," Harry says with a huge grin, "but he just peed on you."

**Author's Note:**

> My partner was mildly horrified when I was caught reading up on snowy owls. He was convinced I was planning to bring one home and immediately started listing off reasons we shouldn't get a pet owl. So thank you for that, because it was hilarious.
> 
> Thanks for the chance to write Hedwig, she's still probably my all time fave. :) <3


End file.
